Fuel? Smell

[Helirich]

Using some throttle will help keep it running after it fires. I rarely have to do that if my car has been sitting for a few months.

When I was flying airplanes (all carburetor equipped) It would always start quickly because of the prime with 3 shots. I know some owners that had starting problems with fuel injection on hot engine starts.

So back to the question, no benifit to throttle while cranking? (Only after it fires) When I had my incident at the restaurant, it didn't fire at all for awhile.

[CFI]

Not following that first line. The cold engine starts easier. More resistance would make it start harder.

A cold engine will always require more energy to start than a a warm one, but that does not mean that it starts “harder”. The injected engines start just fine in sub-freezing temps, but I guarantee you that the starter worked harder to accomplish that. Heck, even the POH recommends pulling the prop through a few cycles to loosen everything up during winter ops.

There a reason preheaters are poplar in the Northern States.

[Bitsyncmaster]

So back to the question, no benifit to throttle while cranking? (Only after it fires) When I had my incident at the restaurant, it didn't fire at all for awhile.

As long as your curb idle is set correctly than I see no reason or benefit to using the throttle while cranking. That would also cause advance as soon as it started on a hot engine.

[David T]

Getting back to the OP's original problem, if you are getting a fuel smell out of the A/C it is because something is leaking in the top of the fuel tank area. On one car I saw, the OEM fuel sender leaked at the rivets. Some silicone sealer and all was good again. This fuel smell problem always seems to occur when you fill the tank up to the top. Because of the high pressure, you may never see a tiny leak but because it is so small, the fuel atomizes as soon as it escapes and becomes fumes. Go back and recheck everything. If it is a hose problem it will always smell. If it is not a pressure leak it will only be noticeable when you have more than 1/2 tank of fuel. It certainly could be a bad fuel cap or the neck where the cap attaches is bent preventing the cap from sealing properly. I had to replace my cap because the rubber gasket got hard and didn't seal well anymore. The Delorean fuel cap is kind of special, you will have trouble finding a replacement that works. Get it form a Delorean vendor. The neck is soft enough that if you lean on the fuel nozzle while fueling you can bend the neck.

[Helirich]

Getting back to the OP's original problem, if you are getting a fuel smell out of the A/C it is because something is leaking in the top of the fuel tank area. On one car I saw, the OEM fuel sender leaked at the rivets. Some silicone sealer and all was good again. This fuel smell problem always seems to occur when you fill the tank up to the top. Because of the high pressure, you may never see a tiny leak but because it is so small, the fuel atomizes as soon as it escapes and becomes fumes. Go back and recheck everything. If it is a hose problem it will always smell. If it is not a pressure leak it will only be noticeable when you have more than 1/2 tank of fuel. It certainly could be a bad fuel cap or the neck where the cap attaches is bent preventing the cap from sealing properly. I had to replace my cap because the rubber gasket got hard and didn't seal well anymore. The Delorean fuel cap is kind of special, you will have trouble finding a replacement that works. Get it form a Delorean vendor. The neck is soft enough that if you lean on the fuel nozzle while fueling you can bend the neck.

On the two occasions that we smelled the fuel. First was after 30 minutes of driving and the tank was almost full when we started. It was not a panic stop, but it was a fast deceleration from 65. The second time was more than an hour later (driving time) on the way home. Again, fast deceleration from 65. I did not fill the tank in between, so the tank was not very full.

When we got back to town, I filled the tank and drove 7 miles to my house. The next day, I removed the tank cover and tried to make it leak. (Several fast stops from 70) Couldn't smell a thing and could see any wetness on the tank.

[MrChocky]

As others have said.... and I restate starting with the simplest thing first... replace your old gas cap. There is a high probability that this is the issue.

I was in the same boat within the first few weeks of owning my DeLorean and smelled gas in the interior and simply resolved it with a new gas cap from DGo

Yes, and quoting this one more time because it's important. *Also* check, (as already noted), your accumulator lines. They are very likely original.